Mail Call - March 24

March 24, 2011

“I was just, wanted to make a comment about I think the BOE right now, I’ve been told that they’re re-evaluating the procedures on whether or not to notify parents when a child takes a BB gun to school. I think when they re-evaluate these procedures, they also should have some of the parents in on that meeting, when they do the re-evaluation, and the parents can express their opinions.”— Hagerstown

“I just wanted to know if anybody has driven past the new Ruth Ann Monroe Primary School and seen the triangular-shaped windows coming out of the roof. Each one has three crosses in it. I think it’s good that we’re putting God back into the school, whether people know it’s there or not.”— Halfway

“Maryland’s $19 billion unfunded pension problem is exactly why unions shouldn’t be allowed in the public sector. When Democratic Gov. O’Malley sided with unions in fighting for collective bargaining rights, the taxpayer wasn’t represented. Now O’Malley realizes he can’t keep his pension promises and has asked the unions to give a little back. ... When unions are allowed to negotiate with the guy they put in office, the taxpayers are going to come out on the losing end.”— Smithsburg

“I hope you Maryland state retirees are aware of how our prescription plan is going to be cut so we will hardly be able to afford it. It doesn’t seem fair that only the retirees will be affected by this. What are our legislators and the unions doing about this? After all, we haven’t had a raise in two years, but we still pay into our medical plan. Why is this not being shared by all state employees, not just the retirees? Please check into this and tell us why the burden is being placed only on the retirees. This is so unfair.”— Halfway

“In response to the Mail Call from 3/16/11 stating that ‘Lent is not a Catholic event,’ I would like to ask you if you have ever researched the Catholic religion. Lent is celebrated by the Catholic Church. There is fasting and self-denial of bad habits. To make it seem that Catholics are not Christians is incorrect as well. Catholics are Christians, because Christianity, simply put, is based on the life and teachings of Jesus. The three largest groups of Christianity include the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox churches and various Protestant churches.”— Hagerstown

“I just read in tonight’s paper that the Maryland Senate is debating a bill that would allow illegal immigrants to pay in-state tuition rates in Maryland colleges. How can this be allowed? I’m not sure what the debate is. I’m a U.S. citizen who pays taxes and pays income taxes. Illegal immigrants don’t have Social Security numbers, so how are they being allowed to work legally in the U.S., and also, how are they paying taxes if they don’t have a Social Security number to file their income taxes? Why should they receive in-state tuition?”— Hagerstown

“It’s so nice that the hospital enforces the no smoking rule. I wish the stores would do the same. I have asthma, and when someone is out in front of a establishment, no matter how far you try to avoid the smoke, it still gets you. Please, smokers, try to go to your car or away from the front of the stores ... one day you’ll know what I mean, because you may come down with asthma or a severe breathing problem.”— Williamsport

“I’ve been reading misleading signs, as you enter Maryland from Pennsylvania and also from West Virginia. These signs read ‘No cellphone use, no texting’ — of course, handheld. But what gets me is it is allowed in Maryland. I don’t know why they’re saying it’s not. I mean, it’s allowed in Maryland as long as you’re not speeding or being reckless or anything like that.”— Hagerstown

“I’m sitting out, sitting here in Williamsport at my apartment on Conococheague Street. It’s nice that they’re redoing City Hall. It’s nice that they’re redoing the sewer. But what we would like to know is why don’t they help the small businesses come back into Williamsport? I’m sitting here looking out my window and looking at empty storefronts. ... I think they ought to try to get some businesses back into the town of Williamsport, because it’s gonna end up being a ghost town.”— Williamsport

“I just heard on CNN this morning that the Japanese children, when there’s no teachers in the classroom, they take care of themselves, and they take care of others. Gee, I wonder what would happen if the same thing happened here in the U.S., and there was no supervised classroom? Food for thought, isn’t it?”— Hagerstown

“It really disturbs me, sitting here reading the paper, where Washington County wants to give a $10,000 bonus for people who retire early, but we can’t afford to give Washington County employees a raise that they well deserve.”— Clear Spring

“Parents, back off your children about the MSA testing. You’re making them anxious and upset; therefore, they won’t do well. The testing will not determine whether your child will be successful in life. Back in the day, it was called achievement test. I remember I was good for about 15 minutes, then I shaded in anything, without reading the material. But yet I graduated from college. ... Let your child develop his or her natural talent, with no pressure. Back off.”— Hagerstown

“To Rohrersville: You’re obviously a Republican, very familiar with political tricks, and seem to know things without much investigation. Perhaps then you can tell us who in the Republican Central Committee or elected Republicans had the idea for the robocall against Kristin Aleshire. Maybe you can tell us who wrote the script, who authorized its release to the telemarketer, and who paid for it. ... No true conservative would use government to force their religious beliefs on others.”— Keedysville

“In Mail Call today, someone was discussing the change in the mail service, that it would take longer to get mail if they changed it. I had a letter mailed from Pittsburgh, Feb. 18, received March 10. The envelope looked OK; not torn or dirty. Where it was all that time, who knows.”— Hagerstown

“I was reading in The Herald-Mail where a bull was headed towards our new hospital, but the police did a fine job stopping him. God bless the sheriff’s department.”— Hagerstown

“I’m calling about the Social Security checks that have been delayed a few days. A simple solution for the people on Social Security that don’t want to wait: Get direct deposit.”— Smithsburg

“I agree with the person from Hagerstown who wrote in and said that the wording of the Bible should not be changed. God said, in the Bible, do not change his words, because there will be repercussions if it is.”— Falling Waters, W.Va.

“I want to inform the Hancock caller that those verses at the end of the Book of Revelation were to be applied only to that book and not to the whole Bible. John, the author, wrote Revelations for the seven churches of Asia Minor. It was to be a circular letter, and he simply wanted the seventh church to read the same message as the first. The warning had nothing to do with prohibiting different translations of the Bible. Just remember, the original authors of the Bible wrote in Hebrew and Greek, not any kind of English.”— Hagerstown